The Queensland Gas Conference and Exhibition (QGCE), to be held in Brisbane on August 16-17, 2011, will put a world spotlight on the state’s rapidly expanding coal seam gas (CSG) and LNG industry.
The conference and exhibition is being organised by Reed Exhibitions. According to QGCE exhibition manager David McCarthy, the inaugural event has been timed to coincide with the start of what promises to be a massive new energy sector for Queensland.
“This is an industry that didn’t exist five years ago, but is now worth a potential $40 billion to Queensland, along with the creation of 10,000 new jobs,” he said. “Not only that, but Queensland is leading the world in CSG extraction, and the eyes of the world will be on this region over the next few years as this new, much cleaner source of energy is developed.
“And our global contacts through Reed Exhibitions’ Energy and Marine Group means we can tap into a worldwide audience for suppliers of specialist products and services for the CSG sector – as well as gain access to world-leading specialists in this new technology,” said McCarthy.
“Currently there are four massive CSG projects in the planning and approvals stages; two of these have been approved by both the state and federal government, and a third one is expected to be approved by Christmas,” he said.
“As Premier Anna Bligh has stated, Queensland is developing a whole new industry. The state will host the world’s first LNG development based on CSG, which will allow it to rival the North West Shelf Project in Western Australia as one of the world’s leading gas suppliers,” said McCarthy.
The two-day conference and exhibition will be held at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre, and is expected to attract up to 100 exhibitors, from the major exploration companies to major engineering firms and contractors, through to suppliers of specialised products and services.
The conference element – for which a call for papers has just gone out – is expected to see senior Queensland government representatives – both at a ministerial and departmental level – along with representatives of the major CSG extraction companies, as well as other industry specialists, scientists, academics and commentators.
“QGCE will offer unmatched marketing, information-gathering and networking opportunities for anyone who wants to get in on the ground floor of this major new industry – not only for Queensland, but the world,” McCarthy said.
“We expect to attract representatives of the major players – from industry, government and academia – to this unique, world-first event. We have had plenty of interest from potential exhibitors, and it’s very likely that the available exhibition space will fill up very quickly over the next few months,” he said.